Movies. Screen gems.

Renoir's `Grand Illusion' A Compassionate Masterpiece

October 01, 1999|By Michael Wilmington, Tribune Movie Critic.

A beautifully restored version of one of the screen's inarguable masterpieces, "Grand Illusion" is based on the experiences of Jean Renoir and fellow pilots in POW camps at the end of World War I. Co-scripted by Renoir and Charles Spaak, it is one of the great humanist movies. And, in its rending portrayal of the bonds that spring up between French officers and their German captors -- and the terrible consequences of those bonds -- it's also one of the grand, uncompromising anti-war films.

"Grand Illusion" dramatizes the prison fellowship that springs up between German aristocrat-commandant Von Rauffenstein (Erich Von Stroheim) and his French officer counterpart De Boldieu (Pierre Fresnay), while also expertly depicting the social divisions between De Boldieu and his fellow prisoners, plebeian Marechal (Jean Gabin) and Jewish Rosenthal (Marcel Dalio).) Indeed, by showing us the seeming nobility and adventure of war -- the bluff heroism of pilot Marechal, the high spirits of Rosenthal and the spiritual bond between aristocrats De Boldieu and Von Rauffenstein -- Renoir nails its ultimate obscenity. If men this good and sympathetic destroy one another, what hope is there?

As a portrayal of war, imprisonment and escape, "Grand Illusion" is truly inspiring and brilliant, stunningly photographed by Christian Matras, exhilaratingly directed by Renoir. Especially memorable: the hilarious camaraderie of the French POWs (including Renoir regulars Julien Carrette and Gaston Modot), the harrowingly tender scenes between suave De Boldieu and his shattered captor Rauffenstein and the climactic flight of the blunt, good-hearted Marechal and his fellow fugitive Rosenthal. But it's important to remember what the title means: According to Rosenthal, the hope for a lasting peace is the illusion that torments them all.

An ultimate work of one of the cinema's masters, "Grand Illusion" should be seen and reseen for its supreme artistry and ennobling compassion. And this new print, a complete restoration from the recently rediscovered original camera negative, which was believed lost since World War II, is far better than any I have watched over three decades. Even if you have already experienced "Grand Illusion," this current engagement is a must-see. (Also see Renoir's "La Crime de M. Lange" on Saturday, below.)

- "Love 65" (star) (star) (star) (Bo Wideberg; 1965). Wideberg's profound admiration for John Cassavetes' "Shadows" led him to make several films directly inspired by it. This one, which deals with the problems of a philandering film director (Keve Hjelm) and his wife (Anne-Marie Gyllenspetz) -- and features a supporting performance by "Shadows" star Ben Carruthers (as himself) -- is less successful but more interesting, full of painful self-revelation and many '60s references. With Thommy Berggren, as himself. Also, at 6 p.m.: Wideberg's 1962 "Shadows"-influenced tale of a Malmo teenager (Inger Taube) impregnated by a rock singer, "The Baby Carriage" ( (star) (star) 1/2). (Swedish, subtitled.) 7:45 p.m. Thursday, The Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Columbus Drive at Jackson Boulevard; 312-443-3737